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`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
`United States Patent and Trademark Office
`Address: COMIVHSSIONER FOR PATENTS
`PO. Box 1450
`Alexandria1 Virginia 22313-1450
`wwwusptogov
`
`
`
`
`
`14/365,706
`
`06/16/2014
`
`Masanori Kobayashi
`
`20240.0027USWO
`
`9667
`
`53148
`7590
`05’1“)”
`HAMRE, SCHUMANN,MUELLER&LARSONP.C. —
`45 South Seventh Street
`BOBISH, CHRISTOPHER S
`Suite 2700
`MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55402- 1683
`
`PAPER NUMBER
`
`ART UNIT
`3746
`
`NOTIFICATION DATE
`
`DELIVERY MODE
`
`05/19/2017
`
`ELECTRONIC
`
`Please find below and/0r attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
`
`The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
`
`Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above—indicated "Notification Date" to the
`following e—mail address(es):
`PTOMail @hsml.com
`
`PTOL—90A (Rev. 04/07)
`
`

`

`
`
`Applicant(s)
`Application No.
` 14/365,706 KOBAYASHI ET AL.
`
`
`AIA (First Inventor to File)
`Art Unit
`Examiner
`Office Action Summary
`
`
`CHRISTOPHER BOBISH [SENS 3746
`-- The MAILING DA TE of this communication appears on the cover sheet with the correspondence address --
`Period for Reply
`
`A SHORTENED STATUTORY PERIOD FOR REPLY IS SET TO EXPIRE g MONTHS FROM THE MAILING DATE OF
`THIS COMMUNICATION.
`Extensions of time may be available under the provisions of 37 CFR1. 136( a).
`after SIX () MONTHS from the mailing date of this communication.
`If NO period for reply is specified above, the maximum statutory period will apply and will expire SIX (6) MONTHS from the mailing date of this communication.
`-
`- Failure to reply within the set or extended period for reply will, by statute, cause the application to become ABANDONED (35 U.S.C. § 133).
`Any reply received by the Office later than three months after the mailing date of this communication, even if timely filed, may reduce any
`earned patent term adjustment. See 37 CFR 1 .704(b).
`
`In no event, however, may a reply be timely filed
`
`Status
`
`1)IZI Responsive to communication(s) filed on 03/13/2017.
`El A declaration(s)/affidavit(s) under 37 CFR 1.130(b) was/were filed on
`
`2b)|ZI This action is non-final.
`2a)|:l This action is FINAL.
`3)I:I An election was made by the applicant in response to a restriction requirement set forth during the interview on
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`; the restriction requirement and election have been incorporated into this action.
`
`4)|:| Since this application is in condition for allowance except for formal matters, prosecution as to the merits is
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`closed in accordance with the practice under Exparte Quay/e, 1935 CD. 11, 453 O.G. 213.
`
`Disposition of Claims*
`
`5)IZI Claim(s) gas/are pending in the application.
`5a) Of the above claim(s)
`is/are withdrawn from consideration.
`
`is/are allowed.
`6)I:I Claim(s)
`7)|Z| CIaim(s)_1-5is/are rejected.
`8)|:I Claim(s)_ is/are objected to.
`
`
`are subject to restriction and/or election requirement.
`9)I:I Claim((s)
`* If any claims have been determined allowable, you may be eligible to benefit from the Patent Prosecution Highway program at a
`
`participating intellectual property office for the corresponding application. For more information, please see
`hit
`:/'/\W¢W.LISI>I‘.0. ovI’ atentS/init events/
`
`
`
`iindex.‘s or send an inquiry to PPI-iieedback{®usgtc.00v.
`
`Application Papers
`
`10)I:l The specification is objected to by the Examiner.
`11)I:l The drawing(s) filed on
`is/are: a)I:I accepted or b)I:I objected to by the Examiner.
`Applicant may not request that any objection to the drawing(s) be held in abeyance. See 37 CFR 1.85(a).
`
`Replacement drawing sheet(s) including the correction is required if the drawing(s) is objected to. See 37 CFR 1.121 (d).
`
`Priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119
`
`12)IXI Acknowledgment is made of a claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a)-(d) or (f).
`Certified copies:
`
`a)IZl All
`
`b)|:l Some” c)I:l None of the:
`
`1.IXI Certified copies of the priority documents have been received.
`2.|:l Certified copies of the priority documents have been received in Application No.
`3.|:| Copies of the certified copies of the priority documents have been received in this National Stage
`
`application from the International Bureau (PCT Rule 17.2(a)).
`** See the attached detailed Office action for a list of the certified copies not received.
`
`Attachment(s)
`
`
`
`3) D Interview Summary (PTO-413)
`1) D Notice of References Cited (PTO-892)
`Paper No(s)/Mai| Date.
`.
`.
`4) I:I Other'
`2) I] InformatIon DIsclosure Statement(s) (PTO/SB/08a and/or PTO/SB/08b)
`Paper No(s)/Mai| Date
`US. Patent and Trademark Office
`PTOL—326 (Rev. 11-13)
`
`Office Action Summary
`
`Part of Paper No./Mai| Date 20170515
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 14/365,706
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`Page 2
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`Art Unit: 3746
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`DETAILED ACTION
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`The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent
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`provisions.
`
`Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1. 1 14
`
`A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set
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`forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this
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`application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set
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`forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action
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`has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on
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`03/13/2017 has been entered.
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`Response to Amendment
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`The amendments filed 03/13/20176 have been considered and are insufficient to
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`overcome the Park and Tupper references.
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`Claims 1-5 remain pending.
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 14/365,706
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`Page 3
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`Art Unit: 3746
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`Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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`The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis
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`for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
`
`(a) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described
`as set forth in section 102 of this title, if the differences between the subject matter sought to
`be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been
`obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which
`said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negatived by the manner in which the
`invention was made.
`
`Claims 1-2 and 4-5 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being
`
`unpatentable over Park et al (US Patent No. 8,844,317) in view of Tupper (US Patent
`
`NO. 3,038,765).
`
`Park teaches:
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`limitations from claim 1, a sealed compressor comprising: an electric component
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`(100) including a stator (110) and a rotor (120) which is rotatable with respect to
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`the stator; a compression component (200) activated by the electric component;
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`and a sealed container (1) accommodating the electric component and the
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`compression component (see FIG. 1); wherein the compression component
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`includes: a vertical shaft (220) including a main shaft (221) fastened to the rotor,
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`an eccentric shaft (223) which is eccentric with respect to the main shaft, and a
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`flange (222) connecting the main shaft and the eccentric shaft to each other; a
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`cylinder block (210) including a main bearing (212 see FIG. 2) supporting the
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`main shaft such that the main shaft is rotatable, and a cylinder (211) having a
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`compression chamber inside thereof; a piston (240) which is coupled to the
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`eccentric shaft and is reciprocatable within the compression chamber; and a ball
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`bearing (300) placed between the flange and a thrust surface of the main
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`

`

`Application/Control Number: 14/365,706
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`Page 4
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`Art Unit: 3746
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`bearing; wherein the ball bearing includes: a cage (310); a plurality of rolling
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`elements (320) held in the cage; a first race (420) and a second race (410) which
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`sandwich the rolling elements therebetween in a direction parallel to an axial
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`direction of the main shaft (see FIG. 1); and an elastic support member (600)
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`placed between the second race and the thrust surface of the main bearing in a
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`direction parallel to an axial direction of the main shaft (see FIG. 1);
`
`Park does not teach a relationship between the rotor mass, spring constant, and
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`rotational frequency;
`
`Tupper teaches:
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`limitations from claim 1, an electric motor (FIG. 1) driving a shaft and rotor (9, 6),
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`including a thrust bearing (10, 11) with springs (24, 25); and wherein when a
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`mass of a shaft assembly including the rotor and the shaft is M, a spring constant
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`of the support member is K, and a maximum rotational frequency of the
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`shaft assembly is F, a relationship of F < (1/4 'IT) * (K/M) 0.5 is satisfied (Tupper
`
`teaches in FIG. 5 and C. 6 Lines 33-54 that the relationship between mass,
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`frequency, and spring constant be chosen within desired ranges in order to
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`prevent the transmission of harmonics and forces in order to damp the motor);
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`It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of compressors at
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`the time of the invention to choose a mass, frequency, and spring in the
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`compressor of Park using the equation of claim 1, as suggested by Tupper, in
`
`order to control the transmissibility of the bearing and the forces damped by the
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`bearing (see C. 7 Lines 1-56 of Tupper disclosing various considerations and the
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`effective results of designing the bearing assembly while considering the
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`elements of the claimed equation).
`
`

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`Application/Control Number: 14/365,706
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`Page 5
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`Art Unit: 3746
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`Park and Tupper disclose and teach of the compressor in claim 1 ;
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`Park further teaches:
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`limitations from claim 2, wherein the support member (600) is an annular wave
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`washer (see FIG. 2); and wherein the wave washer is configured to include a
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`plurality of convex portions protruding in a thickness direction toward the second
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`race and a plurality of convex portions protruding in the thickness direction
`
`toward the thrust surface of the main bearing such that the convex portion
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`protruding toward the second race and the convex portion protruding toward the
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`thrust surface are arranged alternately (FIG. 2; C. 6 Lines 20-26);
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`limitations from claims 4-5, a compressor for a refrigerator (FIG. 6; C. 3 Lines 1-
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`2) wherein the electric component is activated by one of a plurality of operation
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`frequencies using an inverter power supply which adjusts a frequency of electric
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`power supplied to the electric component (see C. 3 Lines 25-30 teaching an
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`inverter motor);
`
`Claim 3 is rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over
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`Park et al (US Patent No. 8,844,317) in view of Tupper (US Patent No. 3,038,765) as
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`applied to claim 1 above, and in further view of Duescher (US Patent No. 6,607,157).
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`Park does not teach a specific diameter or thickness of the washer 415;
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`

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`Application/Control Number: 14/365,706
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`Page 6
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`Art Unit: 3746
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`Duescher teaches:
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`limitations from claim 3, a thrust bearing for a shaft, wherein a wave washer is
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`formed of a spring steel; and wherein when a diameter of the main shaft is d and
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`a thickness of the wave washer is t, 0.1d < t < 0.3d is satisfied (C. 23 Lines 55-63
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`describes the relationship between the diameter of a spring washer and its
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`thickness);
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`It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art of bearings at the
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`time of the invention to choose a diameter and thickness of the bearing spring in
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`Park, using the equation of claim 1, as a matter of routine optimization in order to
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`control an axial force on the shaft of the compressor (see C. 23 Lines 56-58 of
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`Duescher);
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`Response to Arguments
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`Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-5 have been considered but are
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`moot because the arguments do not apply to any of the references being used in the
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`current rejection.
`
`Conclusion
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`Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the
`
`examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER BOBISH whose telephone number is
`
`(571 )270-5289. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday through Friday, 9-5.
`
`Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video
`
`conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 14/365,706
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`Page 7
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`Art Unit: 3746
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`interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request
`
`(AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
`
`If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s
`
`supervisor, Devon Kramer can be reached on (571 )272—71 18. The fax phone number
`
`for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571 -273-8300.
`
`Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the
`
`Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for
`
`published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR.
`
`Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only.
`
`For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should
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`you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic
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`Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a
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`USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information
`
`system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272—1000.
`
`/CHRISTOPHER BOBISH/
`
`Examiner, Art Unit 3746
`
`